Darn it!

I think the subject title of this thread shows incredible restraint on your part.  That’s not the expletive I would have uttered when I saw the damage.  That B&O paint scheme is one of the nicest around.  Hope you get a refund and hope you find another.

Is that 30-2134-3?  MTH used a plastic around that time that got brittle in time.  A number of passenger cars got broken truck mounts while in transit.  There is a fix for the passenger car truck mounts involving styrene and JB weld.  Can’t see the repair on the passenger cars with shiny side up, but unfortunately, that’s not the case for the doodlebug.

Two words…SUPER GLUE.  👍

Follow up report.  Well, this ebay seller-  NY Electric Trains- are stand up guys.  He gave me a full refund and said to just keep it.  I have found all the pieces in the box and hand fit each one, so they are all there.  Will put it back together, use the Squadron plastic bondo to fill any voids, and touch up paint it.  I emailed this company back thanking him for the refund and the car, plus offered to pay him the same amount I was willing to pay for one damaged almost the same as this one, but that seller refused to take my offer.  The other broken B&O Doodlebug that some of you may have seen, the seller wanted a price that was equal to the price that this car had sold for undamaged, and I offered 20 less with no luck.  If NY Electric Trains will just be a bit more careful with packing, they can avoid this,  Interesting to note that the package was sent USPS, but a FedEx truck delivered it.  I am in Western NC at ground zero for Helene, and some things are still not working 100% and won't be for a long time, if ever.

Please post pics of your restoration attempt.  I wish you luck.

Reminds me of a TV I paid $1500 for back when the LCDs first came out. The box showed up and appeared a fork lift rammed through it and tore the whole corner of the TV off. I got a full refund and UPS never came to collect the damaged merchandise. The TV powered up so I took clear mylar tape and put it back together and it worked perfectly. Still watching it to this day. Hope you have the same luck. The odd thing about your picture is the yellow Railking box doesn't even look damaged? Anyway, best of luck. Hope all is getting well in your area. I am in Greensboro. I know Helene was a mess for you guys.

Brad

Re - FedEx through USPS - both FedEx and UPS have reduced cost delivery options wherein their local drivers drop off packages at the local post office, and the last leg of the delivery is via USPS.

@CALNNC.......It can be done..........and this was one was MY fault!

Mike

Not surprised at the way NY Electric Trains made good. They are an excellent seller. I am surprised at the rather poor packing job. If you buy a lot on eBay you see all kinds of crazy packing. Some of it is pretty funny. The Trainz guys are the champs of great packing though. Also very responsive if there's a problem. One of the many reasons they get my repeat business.

Cal's post illustrates why I don't like packing peanuts.  With shock and vibration, heavy items "migrate" through the peanuts until they are resting against the side of the box.  Then if it gets dropped or tossed around, damage results.

Tightly-crumpled newspaper, air packs, a roll of bubble wrap, etc., are all better than peanuts.  And none of the messy static electricity trying to get rid of the peanuts!  The key is that the item has to be packed SNUGLY so it can't shake or move around.  My $.02.

Packing peanuts work great if you use them properly, and IMO are far superior to crumpled paper.  The key is to totally fill the box all around to the point you're compressing the peanuts when you close the box.  I frequently use bubble wrap around an item and then fill the box with peanuts as described.

You're an engineer John, most of the people I buy from on eBay are not.  I've had experiences similar to Cal's.